Japan: Yayoi period (about 300 BC - AD 300)

The Yayoi period takes its name from the Yayoi district of
Tokyo where simple pottery differing significantly in style from
earlier Jōmon wares, was first discovered in 1884. The Yayoi period
was a time of significant change, from hunting and gathering to a
settled, agricultural way of life. Wet-rice agriculture and bronze
and iron were introduced from the continent (Korea and China),
probably by individual peaceful settlement, rather than hostile
invasion. With the establishment of small kuni (farming
settlements) came the beginnings of complex regional politics and a
simple class system. There was a systemization of animist religious
beliefs. Armed conflict over territory dates from about the third
century AD.

Most of our knowledge of this period comes through archaeology,
but written Chinese documents also give valuable insights. The
Han shu (late first century AD) describes Japan as a land
of about 100 small kuni which sent tribute to the Han
court. A gold seal found in Japan in 1784 was probably the one
presented to a local ruler in northern Kyūshū by Emperor Guangwu
(Kuang-wu) in AD 57. The third-century Wei zhi describes
Japanese culture and mentions the kuni of Yamatai which
became dominant during the Kofun period.

Most of the pottery of the period, with its characteristic
combed designs, was used for cooking, eating and storage of grain.
However, burial urns up to 76 cm in height have also been found.
Rice, millet, beans and gourds were grown around settlements of
thatched pit houses, granaries and wells. The technology of stone
implements developed significantly alongside progress in the
working of bronze (for ritual objects) and iron (for tools and
weapons). Cloth was woven from flax and paper-mulberry fibres while
personal ornaments were made from glass, minerals, shell and
bronze.